The Miko's Mistake
by Lunarain327
Summary: Kagome accidentally causes a seemingly irreversable switch between Inuyasha and Sesshomaru. With the threat of Naraku gone and another arising, can they fix this before everything falls into chaos? I claim no rights to the characters of Rumiko Takahashi.
1. Chapter 1

"I'd thought we would move on to barriers and shikigami today Kagome," Kaede told the younger miko. The elder priestess' stature was crimpled and shrunken with age. A patch lay over her right eye covering a childhood accident. Her long grey hair was tied back in traditional miko fashion accompanied with the red and white garbs of a proper village priestess.

Kagome, a young woman of 19, was anything but traditional. Her long black hair lay haphazardly down her back and her bangs were always just a little bit too long so she constantly was blowing them out of her eyes. Her clothing was an odd mix of color and a distinct lack of fabric. Far from typical warring states period dress. She was currently wearing a blue capped sleeves t-shirt with a calf-length white skirt. Her feet were barely covered in lime green flip-flops. It was odd but it was a far cry from the short and almost indecent school uniform she wore when she first crossed over into feudal Japan.

"Sure Kaede. Just tell me what I need to do." She said as her blue eyes lit up with enthusiasm.

She had been working on taking her priestess powers much more seriously now that the completed jewel hung around her neck. They had defeated Naraku, the evil half-demon that had possessed most of the jewel, almost a year and a half before hand. After putting a good eight months into her schooling, and finally graduating from high school with more than decent marks, Kagome had all the free time in the world to perfect her spiritual powers. Kaede had been more than happy to train her, hoping to retire soon, and had begun teaching the young woman to harness and manipulate the vast amount of power she possessed. Kaede had been adamant that they not move on to a new technique without first having mastered the one they were working on. After covering and slowly perfecting different types of arrows, spells and sutras that a miko usually uses, purification and healing; they were working now on pushing Kagome's power into the physical world. This would be the hardest lesson of all.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~( )~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Inuyasha watched from afar as the girl he secretly loved learned another way to defend herself, effectively pushing away the need for his protection. He tried not to think of it that way, he knew that this was necessary, but even now as he watched her practice a small barrier his fluffy white dogs ears buried themselves into his thick silver mane of hair. Brushing a leaf off his red fire-rat kimono, his mood soured even more when he sensed the approach of his half-blooded brother who was a full-blooded demon.

Though they had a truce after the demise of Naraku, they were far from friends. The alliance between them was based on the success against a common enemy and Sesshomaru's realization that without an heir Inuyasha would inherit the Western lands and therefore needed to be included in it's goings-on's. So he frequently stopped in, to give Inuyasha an update, which usually led to a 'light-hearted sparing match' between the brothers. But Inuyasha could sense that Sesshomaru was in a mood as well. It would be interesting to see how this particular meeting turned out.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~( )~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ye have a good grasp on basic barriers child. Soon enough ye will be able to divide those powers into protecting those ye want protected, and containing those ye want to contain. But now it is almost time for lunch. Afterwards ye will work on developing shikigami."

"Will that be any harder Kaede?"

"Aye, it is very different from barriers. Shikigami can contain aspects of the creators personality or can be infused with a completely separate soul. But it is difficult. If a priestess makes a mistake in the creation, shikigami can be more than a nuisance. Accidentally capture a friends soul and use it in a shikigami, the friend will die if the shikigami is destroyed before the soul is returned. The key is to recognize the soul for what it is, a corporeal form of a body, and safely transporting it into the shikigami."

"I'd rather not work with souls right now if you don't mind. Let's kept it as simple and mistake free as possible."

"Do not worry child, ye will do just fine."

"Right."

Kagome was startled by a loud crash. She had recognized Sesshomaru's aura earlier but it was rare that his encounters with Inuyasha led to fights anymore. 'What have they gotten into now?' she wondered. Pinpointing their location, she ran for them to see if she could calm them down.

"I'll be right back Kaede." She yelled over her shoulder.

She arrived at the scene to see the two brothers in an all out brawl. Inuyasha was bleeding from numerous cuts and even Sesshomaru had a few leaking a small amount of blood. Angry beyond reason at the brothers stupidity, Kagome raised barriers around them without thinking. She was shocked when they both seemed frozen within a strangely connected barrier that made it almost look like a peanut. It wasn't what she was going for but at least they weren't fighting anymore.

"What is wrong with you two?" She growled out in frustration, her barrier never wavering.

When neither answered she glared. "Inuyasha what did you do?"

Inuyasha slanted his glare away from his brother and gave an Kagome indignant expression. "ME? Why would you think that I did anything?"

"Because Sesshomaru isn't one to act without provocation." Thinking over that statement she added, "Much."

"Keh! Shows what you know."

"What happened Inuyasha?"

"I don't KNOW ok? We were talking about some stupid clause that father had left for Sesshomaru during his rule and when I said it sounded good the bastard attacked me."

Sesshomaru finally spoke up. "I will not risk my rule over some ill-conceived act of charity or some ungrateful half-breed who gets everything handed to him."

"Kagome let me go so I can hand Sesshomaru HIS ASS!"

"Ok whoah, whoah, whoah. What are you talking about Sesshomaru?"

Sesshomaru glared daggers at her but said nothing. Sighing she turned back to Inuyasha. Glaring at him again she added, "Well?"

"Fine!" The hanyou yelled. "Sesshomaru shows up saying the old man had left some sort of clause stating that if Sesshomaru wasn't mated and if I was of age he was to name me heir before the courts. When I said that it was ok with me, he flies off the handle and decided he would TRY to 'beat some sense' into me."

"The only thing I require from you Inuyasha is your revocation of claim on the Western territories and this Sesshomaru is no longer obligated to uphold this ridiculous notion of fathers."

"Nothing doing Sesshomaru. If father says you should do it you should do it!"

"It would start an uprising in the courts. A unnecessary one."

"Well if it does then we'll kick their ass!"

"I will not punish my subjects for having a justifiable aversion to half-breeds."

"And I won't listen to the demands of a stuck-up ass!"

"Shut up!" Kagome said effectively interrupting their triad. "You two are always at each others throats! For two people so much alike I'm shocked you don't get along!" She ranted not noticing that her barrier was turning an odd shade of blue. "You guys should just try walking around in each others shoes for a while and then maybe, you'd see that neither one of you ever had it easy. I-" Kagome was interrupted when her barrier collapsed and shot the three of them apart.

All three looked shocked for a moment but surprisingly Inuyasha was the first to recover. "What have you done?" He said while advancing on her.

But before Inuyasha could get to her Sesshomaru was before her after having effectively smacked Inuyasha into a tree. "Don't touch her!" He growled.

Momentarily confused as to why Sesshomaru of all people would attempt to protect her, she didn't notice the murderous look in Inuyasha's eye or the way Sesshomaru was looking at his claws as if he was seeing them for the first time. Shaking her head she spoke, "Um, Sesshomaru, it's ok. Inuyasha would never hurt me. You didn't have to do that."

Sesshomaru slowly turned and looked at her. His face was a open book of pure shock. It scared her. She'd never seen so much emotion in his face. Then he spoke. "Kagome, it's me."

It took her a second. Sesshomaru NEVER called her by her given name but the way he said 'it's me' made something in her click. And it hit her. "Oh no. No. No. No. NO! I didn't- Oh KAMI!" Standing up she looked Sesshomaru straight in the face. "Inuyasha?"

"What did you do Kagome?" Was all he said.

Looking at Inuyasha, no Sesshomaru, who was still against the tree glaring she shook her head. "I don't know."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~( )~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"And then they were in each others bodies." Kagome finished looking absolutely miserable. She had done something that caused the brothers to switch bodies. Inuyasha, who was in Sesshomaru's body, sat beside her looking rather shocked. Sesshomaru stood rigidly by the door glaring daggers at her but in his half-brothers form was unable to do much since Inuyasha was now faster.

They all watched as Kaede processed everything her student had just told her. Admittedly, she had never heard of anything like this ever happening. Switching a dead soul to a live body was possible but this, this was beyond her understanding. As it was she had a few theories.

"I am unsure as to what passed but it sounds like ye took the concept of shikigami, added it with spell casting, and fused it with the barrier."

"But we never got around to practicing shikigami!"

"It is my belief that my explanation was enough to put the concept in action. The general understanding allowed ye to act off of what ye knew."

"Can it be undone?" Kagome asked looking hopeful.

"I am not sure child. Souls are very difficult things to transplant and it would be extremely dangerous to try again. If either of their souls were to stray from their path, even for a moment, it would be very difficult to get it back into the proper body."

"This is all my fault." Kagome practically wailed while dropping her head to her knees.

"Now, now child. Do not fret. Perhaps ye should visit Miroku and Sango or call on Myoga. They may have more information for ye that this old woman is unaware of."

"There's an idea Kagome," Inuyasha said.

"Ugh, please don't talk Inuyasha. It just sounds so weird when it's Sesshomaru's voice saying all those…. nice things. At least when Sesshomaru insults me with your body it sounds natural."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means, hal- little brother, you are always uncouth and rude. This Sesshomaru is never nice." He stated.

"Yeah, but I never sounded that hoity-toity."

Sesshomaru growled.

"Ok stop it." Kagome interceded. "Now is not the time and I really don't think your bickering is going to help things. We have a plan of action and I suggest we follow it and hopefully come up with a solution."

Everyone seemed to be in agreement. As they were getting together the things they needed for the journey to the old Demon Slayers Village, Kaede watched them. Yes it was very odd to see the body of Sesshomaru so animated with Inuyasha's spirit. And seeing Inuyasha's form so calm, so _quiet_, was even more of a disturbance. As she waved them off Kaede could only hope they found a solution fast. For this did not bode well, this did not bode well at all.


	2. Chapter 2

This was pure agony. Even Naraku wasn't this bad, hell, Kagome would GLADLY take on Naraku single-handedly and naked to avoid this torture.

They hadn't been on the road long when Inuyasha started niggling Sesshomaru. It was sooo great to have full demon hearing, and scent and _sight_. Even Kagome could hear the irritation in Sesshomaru's growls and the intention behind them. It was the, shut-up-or-loose-a-limb, growl. Of course Inuyasha being Inuyasha, kept going. That was about the time Sesshomaru discovered the one thing that could make Inuyasha jealous enough to shut-up, his new-found use of Tessaiga. That led to another all out fight. Kagome, afraid to try the barriers again lest something else unexpected happen, just sat there helpless and _pissed_. They both ignored her verbal attempts to get them to stop, until she let the s-word slip. She'd forgotten that Inuyasha was now free of the spell. Sesshomaru had _not _been pleased.

But it had stopped the fight. Inuyasha was too busy laughing to continue the current feud and Sesshomaru was otherwise occupied with the dirt. But once he was released from the spell he was in Kagome's face and Inuyasha was in his. He may not have had Tessaiga but he was still faster and wasn't about to let Sesshomaru touch Kagome.

After some apologizing and persuading, Kagome had calmed them both down enough to get them to agree to a truce. Inuyasha was not allowed to rub the use of Sesshomaru's own body in his face and Sesshomaru was not allowed to use Tessaiga against them. By this time night had fallen and they had to stop to make camp. No more problems right? Well, Kagome was never lucky.

"Why does he get Ramen? There's only a few left!" Inuyasha demanded.

"Inuyasha, don't be so rude. Sesshomaru has to eat too and since you weren't willing to leave long enough to rustle up something to eat or let him leave to do it either, you have to share."

Pulling a gruff pout that looked _so _out of place on his borrowed face, Kagome had to struggle to keep from laughing. This was all too weird.

Sesshomaru sat on the other side of camp silent and brooding. He would never admit out loud how good the human food smelled to his now inferior nose nor how he was almost drooling with anticipation. He had smelled the food before but it never appealed to him. Human food was hardly appetizing in his usual form but he could eat it if he had to. He watched as she poured the boiling liquid into the odd material of the bowl and handed one to Inuyasha and then brought one to him.

"I didn't poison it I promise." She said looking a little offended when he didn't immediately take it.

Giving her a cold sniff he took the damned cup and waited until she left before taking a bite.

"Hopefully we'll make better time tomorrow." Kagome mumbled into her cup.

"Keh, I would've already been there if it weren't for you." Inuyasha bragged.

Kagome was not amused. "You know we would have made a lot better time if YOU hadn't been so idiotic as to pick fights with Sesshomaru the whole way. Shippo has more sense than you."

'_The girl has a point.' _Sesshomaru thought as he struggled not to devour the whole cup of strange noodles in one bite.

"Wench!" Inuyasha yelled while jumping up. "I am NOT idiotic."

Kagome jumped up too. "Are so!"

"Am not!"

"Are so!"

"Am not!"

Sesshomaru sat, getting more and more irritated by the minute. Though this half-breeds body didn't not have the full scale of hearing that his had, the rising volume and pitch of the two arguing made his ears flatten against his skull. His impatience with the situation was growing with each second. The monk better be able to reverse this catastrophe. Or else he would be sorely put out.

* * *

The stressed trio arrived at the demon slayers village two days later. Many arguments and a number of more rules established made the journey much more taxing than it needed to have been. Kagome led the way as she dragged her feet through the gate. Her exhaustion was evident as Sango came to greet them.

"Kagome! Hey! What brings you here?" She said while rushing towards her friend. She stopped short when, what she thought was Sesshomaru followed by Inuyasha, came through the gate as well.

"Sango, is Miroku here?"

"Uh, not at the moment. He went to a neighboring village with Kilala to get some more supplies. You brought Lord Sesshomaru as well." She said looking the imposing Taiyoukai, not really registering that he was not holding himself as usual and that he held Inuyasha's trademark scowl and crossed arms.

"Well when will the lecher be back?" Sesshomaru demanded.

Sango stood shocked. The demon lord had never spoken to her directly. Not once.

Seeing her friends face Kagome stepped in. "You better sit down and let me explain. Can be go back to your hut?"

Recovering Sango nodded her head and lead the way through the slowly recuperating village. Stepping into her hut she turned to Kagome and the two demons. "All right, how about you tell me what's going on."

* * *

After explaining the situation a second time after the monks arrival, the miko and two demons waited with baited breath to see if Miroku could in fact help.

"I'm sorry to say that there isn't much anyone can do for you."

Inuyasha charged toward him. "You mean we're stuck like this monk?"

Inuyasha being much more imposing in Sesshomaru's form had Miroku shrinking back. "No no. I didn't say that. I mean that there is no outside source that I know of that can break this bond. It's there until it's done."

Kagome, who had turned white at the news that there was nothing they could do, lit up a little bit. "What do you mean Miroku? That it will end?"

"I believe so Kagome-sama. In time, the spell you cast will wear off as the brothers being to understand one another."

"I didn't cast any spell!" Kagome stated indignantly.

"Ah, but you did lady Kagome. Maybe not intentionally but when you said that the brothers needed to walk in each others shoe's…"

"I literally made them do it." Kagome finished miserably.

"Yes. Now it is my understanding that when the two finally realize the difficulties of being the other, only then will they return to their own bodies."

Everyone was startled when Sesshomaru disappeared from the room.

"I don't think he's too happy about this." Kagome said stupidly. Groaning, she wondered how it could get any worse. At this rate, the two would NEVER return to their own forms. She missed her hanyou friend who had slowly started to become something more. With the current situation, they wouldn't be thinking about anything more than reversing whatever Kagome had done to the brothers. It was killer for her love life.

"I don't see what's so difficult about being him." Inuyasha groused. "He's full demon. He doesn't have to worry about anything."

Miroku watched the door that Sesshomaru had exited through. "Don't be so sure Inuyasha, don't be so sure."

* * *

Inuyasha had tried to talk her out of it but she had been adamant. She _wanted _to talk to Sesshomaru, alone. They discovered a few things since that fateful day a few weeks ago. Sesshomaru and Inuyasha were experiencing lingering memories that belonged to the other brother. Sesshomaru would have nightmares about being chased by demons, while being only a few years old; barely four in humans years. The death of his mother and abandonment of his older full-demon brother left him alone in a world that hated him. Inuyasha, experienced the sting of his fathers betrayal of the clan by taking that human woman as a mate then dying and leaving him with cleaning up the mess that was left. He had to fight hard to keep those lands that his father had worked so hard to maintain. The confusion and mixed feelings for both was causing enough tension to make all three of them go on edge. And tonight was the night of the new moon. For the first time, Sesshomaru would experience what it was like to be human. Kagome knew how Inuyasha felt about it, and he had endured it all his life. Sesshomaru wouldn't be able to understand the change. It was going to be so hard on him. And Kagome felt terrible for being the cause of it all which is why she wanted to talk to him.

She found him near the creek bed that they had been following. Though he wasn't making it apparent she could tell he was brooding and seemed to jump at every sound that escaped the surrounding trees. He looked terrible.

"Sesshomaru?"

She saw him stiffen but the reticent demon didn't turn around. He didn't tell her to go away either so she sat down beside him.

They were both silent for a minute, just watching the water trickle along the path beaten away by time.

"Sesshomaru, I just wanted to say how sorry I really am about all this. I-I know that it doesn't really help or change anything. I can't imagine how hard this must be for you."

Anger suddenly welled up inside the man-once-demon. Of course it was hard. His sight was practically non-existent, his hearing dulled so much it felt like he had something wrapped around his ears to muffle everything coming in. He no longer had claws, inferior to his previous form but at least they were something, nothing to defend himself with. He was weak. And it was all this woman's fault. He lashed out at her.

"Did you make yourself feel better miko?" He seethed. "You apologized for your very foolish mistake and now your conscience is clear? I have never been so humiliated or felt so insignificant in all of This Sesshomaru's life but you have apologized so that relieves you for your guilt." He sneered.

Kagome sat stunned. He hadn't really said much of the incident, like the old Sesshomaru, he kept his opinions mostly to himself. She knew he was unhappy about the situation, but the level on animosity and fury that she saw in his eyes wasn't something she had prepared herself for. Inuyasha had tried to warn her. Sesshomaru was right of course. This, everything was her fault, and her apology only served to make her feel better but that was all. She was startled when she felt tears prick her eyes.

"You're right. My apology doesn't do anything to help. It just made me feel better to know that I said it to you. Nothing I can say can make it right." She stammered.

Sesshomaru turned to find tears leak out of her eyes and something in side him clenched as his anger slid away. What was this feeling? This human form allowed emotions to flood him, few of which he could identify. This was one of them. Despite the fact that he had every reason, no _right_, to be angry with her he found himself wanting to comfort the crying woman. What had happened had been pure accident, whether it was her fault or not didn't matter, but the fact that she couldn't control it anymore than he could, did matter.

"Cry not miko. I am not dead, so it is not the end of the world. Things could be _slightly_ worse." He said. At least he didn't have to smell her tears tonight. He was uncomfortable enough.

"Thank you Sesshomaru. I know I really made a mess of things, but I hope by the time this is over, we can be friends."

_Friends?_ He thought dubiously. Deciding that though he might temporarily be one, he would never understand humans. He sensed more than felt her shiver beside him. "You should go back to camp miko." He said without looking at her.

"In a little while."

He shrugged. If the woman want to stay and freeze then who was he to order her away? Still, though he would never admit it out loud, it was… acceptable not to be vulnerable _and_ alone. Perhaps, perhaps he could tolerate this situation.

* * *

Sesshomaru stood overlooking the ocean. They were close to his fortress. He'd never been away so long without having been back to give orders and set a list of things that were to be accomplished in his absence. But no matter how much trouble he knew it would cause, he had to go back; even if in this form. He decided to voice his trouble with the miko and then he realized how strange it was that he felt the need to do so. It had to be the lingering feelings of his human side that needed the advice of others. But the miko had common sense, which is more than he could say for his half brother. Though the mongrel seemed to have been coming into some sort of maturity. Everyday he said less and less stupid things.

Feeling the miko approaching him he turned.

"Sesshomaru?"

He said nothing as he looked at her. It didn't matter that he held Inuyasha's body. The eyes was all Kagome needed to see the difference in them. Inuyasha's eye were never so distant. They had always held intense emotion that allowed her to guess what he was thinking no matter what was coming out of his mouth. Now that Sesshomaru housed that body, she was shut out. And it disturbed her more than she cared to acknowledge.

"You needed something Miko?" Sesshomaru asked, effectively interrupting her thoughts.

"Um… yeah." She said not having recovered from her shock.

She remembered what she was going to say as he raised an eyebrow. Definitely a Sesshomaru gesture.

"Oh uh, we're approaching a village. I _suggested_ to Inuyasha that we stay the night. It's been a really long time since I've had a roof over my head."

Sesshomaru could imagine how she had gotten her point across too. He knew the village where they were heading, a mostly demon village might not take kindly to a miko in their midst. But he could understand why she would need to stop.

He nodded once to let her know he found this arrangement acceptable and was slightly gratified by the huge smile that spread over her face. He was not gratified however when she threw her arms around his neck and latched on in a tight hug.

"Miko." He said sternly.

Jumping back, she clasped her hand sheepishly behind her back and mumbled a quick apology. She was just so happy. Inuyasha she could usually get to acquiesce to her wishes but Sesshomaru… if he decided he didn't want to stay in the village, no matter how much she begged and bartered, she would probably have found herself sleeping on the cold ground yet again.

"Kagome!"

Turning around to face the approaching Inuyasha she waved widely at him. "Inuyasha!" She yelled as she ran towards him. Stopping to look back at the prone Inu-Lord she tossed back,

"Come on Sesshomaru lets go!"

"Inuyasha." He said instead of following.

"Yeah?"

"I must speak with you."

Snorting, Inuyasha made he way over to his brother. It was still slightly disturbing to be looking at the body that he housed for more than 250 years without the use of a mirror. But he was getting used to it.

"What'd ya want?" He asked as he came upon the elder demon.

"The village in question is a demon one."

Inuyasha glanced over his shoulder. "Yeah so?"

Sesshomaru gave him a dead pan look. "We are travelling with a miko."

"Shit. What do we do?"

"They are under the protection of the Western Lands."

Inuyasha knew Sesshomaru was trying to tell him something that would make the situation less of a hassle. A demon village would not take lightly to a miko among them. But for the life of him Inuyasha could not figure out what Sesshomaru's hidden meaning was.

"Get to the point Sesshomaru."

If he didn't know any better, Inuyasha would have bet Tessaiga that Sesshomaru had rolled his eyes. "They are vassals of the Western Lord. They will follow his word."

"Well then go down there and vouch for her!"

"I am not the Western Lord."

"Not the-" Then it clicked. "I have to do it."

"You must be convincing. I was here not long ago."

"Dammit." He looked back over his shoulder and spotted Kagome standing a short distance away. She was looking at them with so much trust and devotion that he couldn't breath. She relied on them to protect her. And in this case, it was Inuyasha who had to act as a demon Lord to ensure her safety in the village. It wouldn't be easy but he would do it, for her. "Keh, tell me what to do."


	3. Chapter 3

As it was discussed, Inuyasha would enter the village first with Sesshomaru and Kagome following behind. And no matter how many times Sesshomaru had drilled into Inuyasha's head what he needed to say and how he needed to act it would still feel awkward putting it into practice.

Inuyasha made his way down the hill preceding the entrance to the village. He could already hear the calls that 'Lord Sesshomaru' was coming. He felt his hackles rise and struggled to maintain the aloof look that he often saw on his brothers face. He could feel Sesshomaru and Kagome behind him, but as instructed, did not look back.

"Greetings Lord Sesshomaru, welcome back." The speaker, a sparrow demon, was the village headman.

"Greetings Sekai. I require a rooms for myself and my companions." God he sounded boring. And snobby. Yep, definitely Sesshomaru-like. He was doing great.

"Companions milord?"

"The hanyou and the miko." He said as Kagome and Sesshomaru made their way to his left.

"M-miko?"

"The shikon miko. She is under my protection as is the hanyou. Under no circumstances are they to be addressed without my express command. Any unwarranted interaction will be punishable by death."

"Of course my Lord. Allow me to show you and your guests to the Inn."

Inuyasha led the way through the village feeling very much like the imposter he was. But as the headman had no hesitation in following his orders he must have performed much like Sesshomaru would. Upon entering their quarters the headman left them to their vices.

It hadn't been as difficult as he thought it would be. He knew enough of his half brother to pull off a convincing performance but the strain of being someone else, someone everyone expected him to be was already wearing on him.

The night passed unremarkably. They were fed excellently and given leave to bathe in the hot springs behind the inn of which Kagome took particular pleasure. Everything was relatively smooth sailing, aside from the snide comments regarding the companions of the demon lord.

Sesshomaru, on the other hand, was not dealing well with the back-handed whispers. And it was difficult for him to keep his composure. After the girl fell asleep that night, Sesshomaru found himself staring at the body he had inhabited for centuries; and found it staring back.

"She seems to have no problems sleeping in a village surrounded with hostiles." He intoned.

Inuyasha glanced at Kagome's sleeping form and then back at his brother. "Yeah, she's always been oblivious. If you give her a few days, your hostiles would be putty in her hands."

Sesshomaru decided not to comment on that.

"You get used to it."

"Used to what little brother?"

"The bullshit."

"Was it always so?" Sesshomaru asked after few moments silence.

Inuyasha gave a careless shrug, but Sesshomaru could sense how awkward he felt. "You get used to it." He said again.

Sesshomaru doubted that, but declined to say so.

"We should probably get some rest. Does one of us need to stay up for look out or are we safe here?"

Sesshomaru gave a casual shrug, "Relatively."

"Good enough for me," Inuyasha intoned before resting his head against the wall behind him.

Sesshomaru mirrored his brother and let himself relax. He hadn't meditated since 'the incident' and was shocked at the amount of tension in his body that was palpable. Settling himself in to the lotus position, he ensued his breathing techniques and began to center himself. He was almost at trance when he was rudely interrupted.

"What'r'ya doing?"

Sesshomaru cracked open an eyeball and saw he had the rapt attention of his younger brother. Realizing it would more expedient to answer than his first instinct was to ignore, he answered.

"Meditating."

"Why?"

Giving up momentarily he uncrossed his legs and stared deadpan at Inuyasha. "It calms my more… turbulent thoughts, and reinforces my control."

"It is hard?"

Searching his own face, he found there genuine curiosity and even a little… desperation.

"No, father taught me when I was still very young."

Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably and said nothing. Strange. Would this always be the reaction when faced with reminders of their father? Cataloging that to be explored later, he made a decision.

"Come here."

Inuyasha's head snapped up, "Why?"

"I intend to teach you. If only to get you to shut up long enough for me to continue my own meditation."

The boy started to move but sat back down after a few moments thought. "Keh, what good'll it do?"

"It aided me in controlling and harnessing my instincts. When I was younger I was prone to incidents involving my temper."

Inuyasha snorted but didn't comment. He knew all about losing yourself to your temper and it was not something to laugh at. "Did it help?"

"Not at first. As I said, this Sesshomaru was young and did not understand the purpose or the rewards."

"You learned to control your demon?"

Sesshomaru raised an eyebrow. Inuyasha took that as a yes. Getting up he made his way to the opposite side of the room and had a seat a foot or so away from Sesshomaru. He watched as Sesshomaru regained his previous lotus, and let his shoulders drop. Copying the position, he waited.

"Take a deep breath and find your center."

"My what?"

Sesshomaru gave him a calculating look then returned to his relaxed state. "The source for all your instincts, power, thoughts and emotions. Find it, and focus on it."

Inuyasha closed his eyes… and felt stupid. How do you find something like that? Is it even tangible? Out loud he asked, "How will I know when I find it?"

"You'll know." Was all his brother said.

Not taking that advice for a grain of salt, Inuyasha resumed his attempt and waited. For what, he didn't know but hey, it was worth a shot at gaining control of something that he'd only been able to keep at bay with Tessaiga. But thinking back the only time Inuyasha had ever seen Sesshomaru loose control was at his fathers grave. And the bastard was REALLY pissed off by then. That meant that his older half-brother had to have learned to control an inner demon that had to be what, 10 times more powerful than his own? Still feeling stupid but knowing that he had nothing to lose, he let his body relax and searched.

He didn't know how long it had been but he did know the exact moment he found his center. He suddenly felt… grounded. It was as if his soul had been anchored to the earth. He explored it, and discovered all the tension and anger and fury that had built up over the years. And he began discarding them. He marveled at how easy it was to cast them off here, in his center, when he had been struggling to just manage them throughout his life. When he was done, and when he finally felt at peace, he allowed himself to surface.

Opening his eyes he found Sesshomaru watching him intently.

"What?"

"Hn. You should make this a common practice brother, you already look less idiotic."

"Keh."

* * *

The next morning found the three much more relaxed than the previous. Kagome, because she had a hot meal, a hot bath and a warm place to sleep, Inuyasha because he had successfully ridded himself of a lot of unwanted feelings, and Sesshomaru… he could pinpoint his reason. But something had changed the night before. He wasn't fully comfortable with it, but he couldn't find fault with it either.

As the group packed up, there was a commotion outside.

"Lord Sesshomaru! Lord Sesshomaru!" Immediately Sesshomaru recognized the voice of his retainer. He had taken two steps toward the door before Inuyasha stepped in front of him.

"You planning on telling him?"

Before Sesshomaru could answer the little green imp burst through the door.

"Lord Sesshomaru! Milord! You are needed immediately!"

Sesshomaru stepped forward, "Jaken what happened?"

The little imp's green locked on Sesshomaru and sneered. "I was not addressing you half-breed. Why are you plaguing my Lord with your presence?"

Fury instantly alit. Half-breed? Did he not know whom he was speaking to? He was halted however when Kagome stepped to his arm.

"He's not talking to you, _Inuyasha_." Looking into her eyes he understood. It would be pointless to try to explain to Jaken the situation. If he didn't recognize him, the members of his courts certainly would not. He looked up to Inuyasha and nodded.

"Jaken." Inuyasha snapped.

"Yes, milord?"

"Why are you here?"

"Oh, milord! The councils of the four territories are conferring! There is great unrest! You are needed immediately!"

Inuyasha did his best not to look confused. Hell, what did he know of conferring councils?

"We tried to send word Lord Sesshomaru, a messenger was dispatched to the village of your half-breed brother Inuyasha but you were not there!"

"Where is the message?" He managed. Maybe if he could read the damn thing, he could make hide or tails out of it.

Jaken produced it immediately. "We really must be off milord, the meeting is within the moons cycle! And the child you permit to follow you has been much worried!"

After glancing through the contents of the message, he felt his irritation build. Shit. What the hell is supposed to do?

"Wait outside Jaken."

"But Lord Sesshomaru-"

"Jaken." He all but barked.

The toad immediately made a hasty exit. Inuyasha turned around and handed the parchment to Sesshomaru. He waited with little patience as his brother read through the missive. He watched as Sesshomaru folded back.

"An immediate departure is necessary."

"Well then lets go." Inuyasha said while turning on his heel.

"The miko and I cannot accompany you."

Inuyasha whipped back around. "What was that?"

"The message states that the council is convening over a territorial matter. For me to permit guests during such a time would be most inappropriate. This Sesshomaru could lose his place in council."

"So? And how? You're the Lord of the West! They can't just kick you out?"

"The cannot remove my claim to the territory but loosing a place at council would nullify all treaties. The West would have no allies in event of an attack."

"Shit. Double shit. Then what the hell an I supposed to do?"

"Go to council."

"I don't know jack-shit about that!"

"Not much will be required of you. You only need to prepare the fortress council arrival-"

"What? They come here?"

"Yes. The West has been a seat for the council since the beginning of our ancestors reign."

"Shit. FUCK!"

"Calm yourself. You are only required to give the orders, the rest will be taken care of for you. At the meeting, you need only listen. You aren't required to make any decisions until after the council leaves, at which point it would be appropriate for you to receive us as guests. This Sesshomaru will be able to aid you at that point."

Inuyasha stayed very still for a moment. " Fine. Where will you guys be? Here?"

"As accommodating as they have been, I do not believe they will be so after your departure. We will return to the village of Edo. You can contact us there when you are able."

Releasing a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding Inuyasha nodded and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Kagome said before he made it to the door. She launched herself in his arms, nearly impaling herself on his armor. "Please, _please _be careful Inuyasha. And I have faith in you. You can do this."

Wrapping his arms around her, he breathed in her scent. She'd only just returned to him a few months ago. He thought after the well closed, that she would never be able to come back. He should have known better. But with something like this looming between them, it left little opportunity for him or her to explore the feelings that they had, but had left unspoken. That didn't mean that he cared any less for her. He looked up, meeting the eyes of his brother.

"Keep her safe."

Sesshomaru merely nodded.

Inuyasha released Kagome and turned to leave again.

"Inuyasha. Keep Bakusaiga out of sight during the meetings. The Sesshomaru has not… revealed its presence."

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow. "Any particular reason why?"

Sesshomaru gave a half-shrug.

"Alright."

With that he exited the building and joined Jaken. Together the two took to the skies on Ah-un as Sesshomaru watched their progress from the door.

Kagome stepped up beside Sesshomaru. "He'll be okay, won't he?"

Sesshomaru glanced down at the young woman who was looking up at him anxiously. "Let us take our own leave, our welcome here is likely to be withdrawn soon."

"Thank you Sesshomaru-sama."

Sesshomaru said nothing but didn't shake her off when Kagome claimed his hand. He felt her need for comfort and allowed her the privilege.

The two left quickly, making their own journey back toward Edo.


End file.
